While He Was Sleeping
by The Lady Yuki
Summary: Sitting by the light of the fire, a lone trainer reflects on a distant memory. Subtle Palletshipping, one sided Darkshipping.


My second fic, much longer than my first. I'm really proud of this one, so I appreciate your reviews! Takes place right after the events of _Power Play, _after Gary and Umbreon part ways with Ash and co.

**Disclaimer: I still don't own Pokemon. **

While He Was Sleeping

It's terribly late, but I can't sleep.

I sit, awake, and I watch him instead. I watch a slight breeze ruffle his hair, the gentle rise and fall of his chest as he breathes, his face blank and peaceful. I'm not my fork-tailed cousin, but I think I am right to predict he will sleep well.

Unlike the other night, when my own slumber was interrupted by cries and moans as he struggled to break the grip of a what sounded like a terrible dream. I ran to his side, knowing that as I lacked the arms to hold him with, I was resigned to whining loudly in his ear.

To my relief, it worked anyway. After he had calmed down, he wrapped his still-shaking arms around me and assured me that it had been "nothing to worry about." I didn't believe him, but I nuzzled his neck and purred. I was just content in knowing that I had saved him.

I suppose he felt guilty about making me worry, because while we looked for a suitable place to sleep the next night, he'd told me the real cause of his torment.

"It was my own fault, I guess. I was really mouthing off to the Gym Leader, so it makes sense the guy would want some satisfaction out of attacking me, too..." he mused as we walked. His hands were shoved into the pockets of his jeans, hidden underneath the hem of his shirt, and although he moved easily enough I could still sense a hint of preoccupation about him. I focused my own gaze on the path ahead of us with more intensity, in case it presented basic hazards he wouldn't be aware of until he tripped over them.

Finally, after selecting a small clearing in the midst of a forest, he set up camp, and we enjoyed a very nice meal. Well, I enjoyed it - I always enjoy his cooking. We'd both had a particularly trying day, and even though it would be a while before I needed to sleep, I thought he would succumb to exhaustion the moment he finished eating. But he stayed awake for a long time afterward, staring into the fire like it might reveal a long lost secret to him.

"You want to know the strangest thing, Bree?" he said finally. My ears perked up at his use of the nickname. "The Pokémon that I saw in there…isn't quite what I remember most about that day."

Curious, I padded over to sit beside him. His tone was a blend of pensiveness and a small hint of embarrassment, like a child who has been caught in the act of bluffing his way out of trouble. I laid my head in his lap, and he stroked the back of my neck. I normally loved the feel of his fingers as they moved slowly through my fur, but tonight even his touch seemed absentminded.

"Y'see… I ran into Ash that day too." he continued, still gazing steadily at the dwindling fire. "And I acted like I usually did whenever we met; showing off my achievements and laughing at him for coming up short. Because I had fun doing it. Seeing him getting all worked up, just from the things that I say to him… always seems to give me a jolt of adrenaline that I can't get from anything else, even from battling. I don't quite understand why, but that's how it is."

His fingers had stopped moving, but I was too intent on listening to his voice to care. I'd never heard him talk like this. Usually every action he took was swift and decisive, but not recklessly so, and he didn't stop to mull things over once he acted on them. It was this characteristic that had earned him the achievements he spoke of, and one of the many things I loved about him. But now it seemed as though something - or more likely, some_one_ - had yanked the rug out from under his feet, and now he was questioning not only what to do next, but also if what had been done before was indeed the right thing.

"And then…after that happened…" He put a slight emphasis on "that", and I didn't need him to elaborate, "the next thing I remember is waking up, and…"

Now his tone took on a note of wonder, surprise. As if he was being shown something of extraordinary beauty.

"He…he was _holding_ me, Bree."

And he lifted his hand from my neck. I glanced up at him, and in the light of the slowly diminishing fire, he crossed his arms over his chest. As if a sudden chill had settled in, although no such thing had occurred. His eyes were closed, the better to remember the one moment that seemed to demand his attention.

"And the way he was looking at me…I was still a bit dazed, but I remember vividly. He looked _scared_. After everything I'd said to him, every measure I had taken to slap him in the face or step on him, all of it…he was afraid that I had been really hurt. It was like nothing bad had ever happened between us, like he still thought of me as..."

He opened his eyes. "He's made of stronger stuff than I give him credit for, if he's able to throw aside things like that so easily. I would have understood better if he'd just left me there and thought that it served me right for being such a smartass little punk."

"_Breon!_" I scolded sharply - I didn't mean to intrude on his thoughts, but I could think of at least one person who wouldn't have approved of such language from him. He gave a small chuckle and returned to stroking my neck. "Sorry, but it's true."

He was quiet for a moment, and then murmured, "But it meant a lot to me that he came back. Maybe I should have told him today. I don't think I even thanked him." He sighed. "I don't know. It was so long ago, he's probably forgotten all about it by now…"

Never had it been more frustrating for me to be a Pokémon than at that moment. There were so many things I wanted to say to him - that we'd all been distracted by this "Team Rocket" group, that there were bound to be plenty more times when we'd run into Ash Ketchum again, more appropriate times for my trainer to say everything that was on his mind. And yet, all I had to offer were the three repeated syllables of my own name.

My thoughts were interrupted when he let out a startlingly loud yawn. "Jeez… it's really late." he mumbled, looking up at the stars. "We'd better get some sleep if we want to get a fresh start in the morning, huh?" He smiled down at me, and my heart skipped several beats. "You did really well today."

Regretfully, I lifted my head from his lap, and watched him extinguish the remains of the fire. He worked quickly, and I sensed that he was trying to distract himself from his previous train of thought.

Then, after everything had been put away and he lay in his sleeping bag, I heard his quiet voice again. "You'll keep that between us, won't you, girl? Just for now?" He yawned a second time, and his next words were slurred with approaching drowsiness. "He'll come back, though. He always..."

I waited for him to continue, and then realized that he'd fallen asleep mid-sentence. I smiled to myself. I knew he'd been exhausted, but I was pleased that he'd kept himself awake long enough to share his thoughts with me, even if they weren't necessarily for my sake.

Watching him now, many hours later, I realize that I can give him more than my name. I can give him my loyalty, and my trust. I can give him a friendly audience, as I have tonight, for his thoughts and feelings, his doubts and fears. I can give him the promise that I will perform to the best of my abilities in battle, as I have done from the moment I met him.

And…

Once again I walk silently to his side, so close that I can hear his soft breathing. It's not my intention to wake him, but for a moment I'm afraid the thunderous pounding of my heart will do that anyway.

Luckily, he doesn't stir when I crouch low over his face, brushing my tongue gently over his lips.

_I have my own secrets, Gary Oak, _I tell him silently, _but there's room in my heart for yours, too. _


End file.
